1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to measurements of fluid flow in a complex system of pipes for distribution to a plurality of consumers. More particularly, the invention relates to use of a single acoustic transducer coupled to a processor for measuring fluid consumption by a plurality of consumers, such as those residing in an apartment building.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various acoustic transducers have been developed for measuring fluid flow in a pipe. For example, Gutterman in European Patent Application EP 0145170 describes a dual frequency acoustic fluid flow method and apparatus. Gutterman also describes in EP 0172676 an acoustic fluid flow meter using a pair of ultrasonic transducers mounted on one wall of a conduit and an opposite reflective wall shaped to focus acoustic signals from one transducer to the other.
Wallen in European Patent Application EP 0932029 describes an acoustic flow meter based on determining upstream and downstream transit times of acoustic pulses transmitted between acoustic signal transceivers.
Conquergood, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,562,584, describes acoustic fluid flow measurement, which processes amplified microphone signals with a signal processor. After processing, the signals may be transmitted wirelessly to a remote site for further processing.